Hotels.com Cancellation Problem

To Whom It May Concern:

I have TWICE called hotels.com to cancel my two-night reservation at Homestead Austin Downtown from 2/13-2/15 (itinerary #XXXXXXX). And TWICE the customer service people told me that they would cancel my reservation and send me an confirmation email in a few minutes. However, BOTH times I failed to receive any email. Now I just checked online to see if the reservation was canceled, and it is STILL there. If I hadn't checked it, the reservation would have presumably remained, and my credit card would have been charged.

So I would like two things:

(1) An email confirming that my reservation IS in fact canceled--a cancellation I'd also like reflected on the website. Although the hotels.com website says I may cancel my reservation online, there is in fact NO option allowing me to do so.
(2) An explanation for why, despite my two phone calls, I never received any cancellation email or had my cancellation reflected on the website.

This is the first time I have used Hotels.com and am very dissatisfied. I no longer intend to use the service again.

Thank you,

Christopher W.

Response: All-Ett's Fair in Love and War

Christopher,

Hello, I am sorry to hear about the wallet that you received and had a quality problem with. We stand behind our product and I would like to replace your defective wallet with a new wallet. Please let me know your shipping address and I will send you a replacement for the Original Nylon wallet.

I apologize for the inconvenience.

Sincerely,

Adam M.

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Great job, All-Ett! For this you've earned The Grouser Star of Approval™!

A Frayed All-Ett

Hi,

I recently bought my second All-Ett billfold (an Original in Nylon Charcoal Grey). My first All-Ett was hands down the best wallet I've ever had: not only was it slim and stylish, it also withstood four years of use. Consequently, it was a no-brainer for me to get another All-Ett when my old one finally bought the farm. Unfortunately, the stitches in this new All-Ett have already started fraying throughout the entire billfold. I am happy to send a picture, but suffice to say it looks kinda ratty. In any case, I plan to remain an All-Ett customer since this is still my favorite wallet. However, I was disappointed with this recent purchase.

Thank you,
Christopher W.

I was really hoping they'd give me free miles...

Dear Mr. W.,

Thank you for contacting JetBlue Airways. We regret to hear that you have been receiving unwanted promotional messages from us. After researching your inquiry, we found that you had not been unsubscribed from all of our lists. We show that you did register for a TrueBlue account which then lists your email in our system. It appears that because you had an open account in they system, this is why the unsubscribe link did not work. We have cancelled the account. We apologize for this error and have completely removed your email address from our system. We're sorry for any inconvenience this has caused you.

Regards,

Paula
TrueBlue Customer Service Crew
JetBlue Airways
Crewmember 26710

JetBlue Blues Part II

Dear JetBlue:

I'm dismayed to say that this is the second time I'm sending an email to JetBlue about the same problem--a problem supposedly fixed nearly a year ago. On September 25, 2008, I wrote to JetBlue to complain that, despite "unsubscribing" from their mailing list several times, I still continued to receive email advertisements (Speak Up # 1894017). I then asked that JetBlue (1) tell me why I continued receiving emails even though I had unsubscribed using the link at the bottom of the emails; and (2) immediately unsubscribe me from their advertising list. Almost a week later, on October 1, 2008, a JetBlue representative, Holly (Crewmember 39215), responded to my complaint. Although she explained why I had initially been signed up to receive advertisement emails, she did not answer why I had not been able to unsubscribe from the mailing list at any point afterward. However, it appeared at the time that she had removed me from the mailing list, so I did not push for more details on why the "unsubscribe" button at the bottom of the ads had not worked in the first place.

Looks like I should have: this morning I check my emails and, lo and behold, I find more spam from JetBlue.

So I'm writing, once again, to ask two requests of JetBlue:

(1) explain why I have not been able to unsubscribe to the JetBlue email list by clicking the link on the bottom of the email;
(2) stop sending me emails in the future.

This whole experience has left me completely disenchanted by JetBlue, and I hope it can be resolved speedily and permanently.

In the interest of full disclosure, I will be posting this email on the consumer complaint website that I run.

Very truly yours,

Christopher W.

Botanical Gardens Cop Out Response

Dear Mr. W.,

Your feedback concerning the New York Botanical Garden's online application was reviewed by our staff. Several departments are currently working to redirect online applications to a more user-friendly and methodically organized site. It will incorporate elements you suggested and deliver emails confirming payment was received.

Thank you for contacting the Botanical Garden. If you have any questions do not hesistate to contact us.

Sincerely,
Membership Office
The New York Botanical Garden
Phone: 718.817.8725
membership@nybg.org

Something Smells Funny in the Botanical Garden

To Whom It May Concern:

About two weeks ago, I purchased an individual gift membership to the Botanical Garden for my mother's birthday. Although my credit card was subsequently charged the $75 membership fee, neither my mother nor I received an email confirmation. When I called the membership line today about this, the representative told me that my mother was indeed registered. The membership materials would arrive in the mail shortly, but I should not expect to receive any email receipt. Apparently, upon purchase, I had an opportunity to print out a receipt, as well as a temporary membership and parking pass.

This is simply not an acceptable way of doing online business. It is common practice for a website to send an immediate confirmation email when you buy something. It's not enough that the site simply provide you with a page to print out. Not sending an email receipt is somewhat like a store clerk showing you a paper receipt and telling you to take a photograph of it if you'd like to keep a record. With online purchases, it is even more incumbent on the company selling the item to ensure that a receipt is delivered directly to your mailbox: unlike the store situation, customers do not walk out with a physical product; instead, they put their trust (and credit card numbers!) in the company's hands in the hopes that the item will be delivered.

In this situation, it was particularly unfortunate that I did not receive an email with the receipt, temporary membership, and parking pass. My mother plans to visit the Botanical Garden for her birthday tomorrow. While the representative from the membership office provided me with my mother's membership number, she told me my mother would not be able to have a parking pass for her visit--since I had apparently missed my opportunity to print it out when I had the chance.

I strongly suggest you revise your policy so that all online purchasers of memberships receive immediate confirmation of their credit card purchases.

Very truly yours,

Christopher W.

JetBlue Response... hopefully successful

Hello Christopher,

Thank you for contacting JetBlue Airways. We regret to hear that you have been receiving unwanted promotional messages from us. When you signed up for our TrueBlue Program, you checked the box to receive special offers from us. At this time, we have removed your email address from our mailing list; you won't receive anymore emails from us including your TrueBlue statements or award notifications. However, you can stay posted on all of your TrueBlue account activity through your online account.

We hope to welcome you onboard a JetBlue flight sometime in the future.

Sincerely,

Holly